Multi-Hole Insulation Tube

ABSTRACT

A multi-hole insulation tube with multiple interior insulation channels to accommodate multiple conduits of unequal temperatures is disclosed. Each channel within the tube is insulated from the other channels so as to substantially prevent the negative influence of one conduit on another through conduction.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

Not Applicable.

STATEMENT REGARDING FEDERALLY-SPONSORED RESEARCH OR DEVELOPMENT

Not Applicable.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of Invention

The present general inventive concept relates generally to an insulationtube, and more particularly to a multi-hole insulation tube withmultiple interior insulation channels to accommodate multiple conduitsof unequal temperatures. Each channel within the tube is insulated fromthe other channels so as to substantially prevent the negative influenceof one conduit on another through conduction.

2. Description of the Related Art

The insulation of conduits or piping has long been known in the art.Further, the prior art also discloses grouping multiple conduitstogether and the insulation thereof. For instance, U.S. Pat. No.5,725,028 teaches a trunk line comprising a plurality of elongated flowlines in parallel juxtaposition, all housed in a single thermalinsulation member. U.S. Pat. No. 5,400,602 teaches a foam-insulated hosedesigned to accommodate both a supply and return conduit filled withcryogenic fluid.

One problem with the above-mentioned prior art is that they cannotaccommodate multiple conduits of unequal temperatures. When separateconduits or flow lines of unequal temperatures are in contact with oneanother, energy is transferred between them through conduction.Conduction causes each conduit or flow line to negatively influence theother. Thus, a system having a hot line and a cold line could not behoused in the same insulation envelope without energy being transferredbetween them.

In an effort to separate conduits housed in the same insulationenvelope, U.S. Pat. No. 6,719,018 B2 discloses a beverage chase systemwhere distribution lines are bundled together and enclosed in a foamtubular member. Multiple bundles are then grouped together in a paralleljuxtaposition and encapsulated in a single insulated housing. Similarly,U.S. Pat. No. 4,653,541 teaches a tube assembly for accommodating one ormore conduits, each having a steel inner tube inside a steel outer tubeand a plastic jacket enclosing the outer tubes. Going even further, U.S.Pat. No. 4,194,536 discloses composite tubing with one or moreconveyance lines and one or more heating lines. One embodiment withmultiple conveyance lines also includes a separation member thatencompasses a single conveyance line and thermally separates said linefrom another line housed in the same composite tube.

In all the prior art disclosures with multiple conduits encompassed in asingle insulation envelope, multiple conduits are either in directcontact with one another or are separated by an additional componentmeant to either insulate one or more conduits from another conduit orgroup thereof, or bundle a group of conduits together. What the priorart does not provide is a single insulation tube that has two or moreinsulation channels to accommodate and insulate two or more conduits ofunequal temperatures without additional structural components.

BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present general inventive concept, in some of its variousembodiments, fills the above-mentioned void by providing a singleinsulation tube containing multiple insulation channels. The multipleinsulation channels can accommodate multiple conduits of unequaltemperature in a single insulation tube and prevent the temperaturetransfer from one conduit to another through conduction.

One embodiment of the multi-hole insulation tube is generally comprisedof an elongated tubular member having two ends and made of flexibleinsulation material. The tube has an exterior surface and two or moredefined interior insulation channels that extend between both ends. Eachinterior insulation channel is designed to receive a conduit that willextend through said insulation channel and through said tube. Theinsulation channels can be of the same diameter to accommodate multipleconduits of the same size. Alternatively, the insulation channels canvary in diameter to accommodate different sized conduits.

Importantly, each insulation channel is self-contained within the tubeand separated from the other insulation channels by the insulationmaterial itself. This is to facilitate the housing of multiple conduitswith unequal temperature flows which is particularly useful in airconditioning and refrigeration equipment. Frequently in residential andcommercial air conditioning systems, multiple conduits or flow lines aresimultaneously run between the same two termination points forrecirculation. One is often for dispensing a relatively cooler flow to atermination point, and the other is often for returning a relativelywarmer flow to the opposite termination point. In the past, each ofthese lines would require its own insulation tube because a singleinsulation housing would cause one line to negatively influence theother through conduction. The present invention permits both flow linesto be housed in a single insulation tube, thus saving space and reducinginstallation time.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The above-mentioned and additional features of the present generalinventive concept will become more clearly understood from the followingdetailed description of the invention read together with the drawings inwhich:

FIG. 1 illustrates a perspective view of one embodiment of the presentgeneral inventive concept containing two insulation channels withunequal diameters.

FIG. 2 illustrates a perspective view of one embodiment of the presentgeneral inventive concept containing three insulation channels, two ofwhich having equal diameters and the third having a larger diameter.

FIG. 3 illustrate a front view of one end of the present generalinventive concept containing two insulation channels.

FIG. 4 illustrates a perspective view of one embodiment of the presentgeneral inventive concept containing two insulation channels eachaccommodating a conduit.

FIG. 5 illustrates a side view of one embodiment of the present generalinventive concept containing two insulation channels each accommodatinga conduit connected to a termination point at both ends.

FIG. 6 illustrates a cross-sectional view of the inventive embodimentillustrated in FIG. 5.

FIG. 7 illustrate front views of two embodiments of the present generalinventive concept where the insulation tube can be opened longitudinallyto access each insulation channel.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

The present general inventive concept, in some of its embodiments,includes generally an insulation tube made of flexible insulation foammaterial and having multiple insulation channels to accommodate multipleconduits. In one embodiment of the present invention, the insulationtube is made of an ethylene propylene diene monomer (“EPDM”) baseelastomeric composition, however one skilled in the art of insulationmaterials will recognize that other elastomeric foam compositions can beused without departing from the spirit or scope of applicant's generalinventive concept. For instance, suitable flexible insulation materialsinclude, but are not limited to, thermoplastic polymers such aspolyethylene (PE), polypropylene (PP), polymethylpentene (PMP),polybutene-1 (PB-1) polyethylene terephthalate (PET), and polyurethane(PU) as well as other polyolefin elastomers (POE) such aspolyisobutylene (PIB) and ethylene propylene rubber (EPR). Additionally,other elastomeric foam materials, including but not limited to, nitrile(NBR), styrene-butadiene (SBR), polybutadiene (BR), natural rubber (NR),chloroprene (CR), butyl and halobutyl (IIR, BIIR, CIIR), silicone (MQ),blends with compatible rubbers, e.g. styrene-butadiene andpolybutadiene, blends with compatible resins, e.g., nitrile andpolyvinyl chloride can also be used.

Referring to FIGS. 1 and 2, the present inventive concept is generallycomprised of an elongated tubular insulation member 2 having two ends4A, 4B. Exposed on either end 4A, 4B, and spanning the length of theelongated tubular insulation member 2, are defined interior insulationchannels 6, 8. The insulation channels 6, 8 are defined by the flexibleinsulation material 3 and are expandable to accommodate a conduittherethrough in a manner that produces a surface contact relationshipbetween the defined insulation channel 6, 8 and the exterior of theconduit.

In FIG. 1, the embodiment contains two insulation channels 6, 8. Bothinsulation channels 6, 8 are cylindrical in the illustrated embodimentand have unequal diameters. Contrastingly, FIG. 2 shows an embodimentwith three interior insulation channels 6, 8A, 8B, also all cylindrical.Insulation channels 8A and 8B have equal diameters, whereas insulationchannel 6 has a larger diameter relative to channels 8A and 8B. Stateddifferently, the insulation channels 6, 8 contained in a single tubularinsulation member 2 can be of equal or unequal diameters. Further, it isimportant to note that one of skill in the art will readily recognizethat the cylindrical nature of the insulation channels are not essentialto the present general inventive concept and can be deviated therefromwithout departing from the scope and spirit of the present generalinventive concept.

FIGS. 3A-3B illustrate an end 4A of the elongated tubular insulationmember 2. The insulation channels 6, 8 are separated in bothillustrations by the flexible insulation material 3. The distance ofseparation between the insulation channels 6, 8 is indicated by D inFIGS. 3A and D′ in FIG. 3B. The distance is selected according to theinsulation material 3 used and the insulation requirements of theaccommodated conduits. For instance, if the heat difference between theaccommodated conduits is great, then a greater thermal resistance value(“R-value”) must be achieved by the insulation material 3 separatingthem in order to properly insulate said conduits from one another so asto minimize or substantially prevent heat transfer through conduction.To achieve a greater R-value, a greater distance D′ is selected toseparate the interior insulation channels 6, 8, as shown in FIG. 3B.

In FIG. 4, the insulation channels 6, 8 are each accommodating a conduit10, 12. Conduit 10 has a larger diameter than conduit 12, and thereforethe larger insulation channel 6 accommodates conduit 10, whereas thesmaller insulation channel 8 accommodates conduit 12. The conduits 10,12 are separated from one another by a selective distance D (see FIGS.3A-3B) comprised of insulation material 3. Distance D is selectedaccording to the heat differences between the conduits 10, 12 andthermal properties of the insulation material 3. Thus, if conduits 10and 12 each contained liquid or gas flows of different temperatures,both would be insulated from one another while also being housed in thesame insulation tube.

FIG. 5 portrays the assembly shown in FIG. 4 with the conduits 10, 12being attached to two termination points 14A, 14B. For instance, thetermination points 14A and 14B could be part of a refrigeration systemwhere conduit 10 is a distribution line whose contents flow from onetermination point 14A to the other termination point 14B, and conduit 12is a return line whose contents flow from termination point 14B totermination point 14A. In the event that the distribution and returnflows are of unequal temperatures, the present invention allows bothconduits 10, 12 to be housed together while still insulating each ofthem from the other.

The cross-sectional view of FIG. 6 shows how each conduit 10, 12 isinsulated from the other by the insulation material 3 that comprises theelongated tubular insulation member 2. The present illustration shows acircular cross section. However, one of skill in the art will recognizethat the circular shape is not essential for the present invention. Thecross-sectional shape can also be, without limitation, rectangular,ovular, or triangular.

In FIG. 7A-B, two additional embodiments are shown that allow theelongated tubular insulation member 2 to be opened longitudinally toaccess each insulation channel 6, 8. In the previously illustratedembodiments, each conduit 10, 12 is installed by inserting one end ofthe conduit 10, 12 into an insulation channel 6, 8 at one end 4A of theelongated tubular insulation member 2 and running the length of theconduit 10, 12 through the insulation channel 6, 8 until the insertedend exits out the insulation channel 6, 8 on the opposite end 4B of thetubular insulation member 2 and the desired position of the tubularinsulation member 2 relative to the conduit 10, 12 is achieved. Turningto the presently illustrated embodiments in FIG. 7A-B, installation ofthe conduits 10, 12 into each insulation channel 6, 8 can be achieved byopening the longitudinal separations 16A, 16B so as to access thespanning interior of each insulation channel 6, 8. Each longitudinalseparation 16A, 16B spans the length of the tubular insulation member 2each included interior insulation channel 6, 8. Conduits 10, 12 are laidin their respective insulation channels and the tubular insulationmember 2 is then closed by rejoining both sides of the longitudinalseparations 16A and 16B.

The difference between the illustrated embodiments of FIGS. 7A and 7B isthat in the FIG. 7A embodiment, insulation channel 6 cannot be accessedwithout also opening and accessing insulation channel 8. This is theresult of longitudinal separation 16B being positioned betweeninsulation channels 6 and 8. Contrastingly, the embodiment in FIG. 7Bhas both longitudinal separations 16A, 16B extending from insulationchannels 8 and 6, respectively, to the exterior of the elongated tubularinsulation member 2. This results in the independent accessibility ofeach insulation channel 6, 8.

While the present general inventive concept has been illustrated bydescription of some embodiments, and while the illustrative embodimentshave been described in detail, it is not the intention of the applicantto restrict or in any way limit the scope of the appended claims to suchdetail. Additional modifications will readily appear to those skilled inthe art. The invention in its broader aspects is therefore not limitedto the specific details, representative apparatus and methods, andillustrative examples shown and described. Accordingly, departures maybe made from such details without departing from the spirit or scope ofapplicant's general inventive concept.

1. An insulation tube comprising: an elongated tubular insulation memberhaving two ends and being comprised of flexible insulation material,said insulation member having at least two defined interior insulationchannels extending between said two ends, said insulation channels beingexpandable so as to each accommodate a conduit therethrough; wherebysaid at least two insulation channels are separated by insulationmaterial, said separation being a selected distance to insulate conduitshaving unequal temperature flows so as to substantially preventconduction therebetween.
 2. The insulation tube of claim 1, wherein saidinsulation member has two defined interior insulation channels.
 3. Theinsulation tube of claim 1, wherein said insulation member has threedefined interior insulation channels.
 4. The insulation tube of claim 1,wherein said insulation member has four defined interior insulationchannels.
 5. The insulation tube of claim 1, wherein the flexibleinsulation material is an ethylene propylene diene monomer baseelastomeric composition.
 6. The insulation tube of claim 1, wherein theflexible insulation material is selected from the group consisting ofpolyethylene, polypropylene, polymethylpentene, polyethyleneterephthalate, polyurethane, polybutene-1, polyisobutylene, ethylenepropylene rubber, nitrile, styrene-butadiene, polybutadiene, naturalrubber, chloroprene, butyl and halobutyl, silicone, blends withcompatible rubbers, eg. styrene-butadiene and polybutadiene, and blendswith compatible resins, eg., nitrile and polyvinyl chloride.
 7. Theinsulation tube of claim 1, wherein the spanning interior of each saiddefined interior insulation channel is accessible via longitudinalseparations.
 8. An insulated conduit assembly comprising: a plurality ofconduits disposed in parallel juxtaposition relative to one another,said plurality of conduits being insulated by a single insulation tube,said insulation tube comprising a tubular insulation member with twoopposing ends and made of flexible insulation material, said tubularinsulation member including at least two defined interior insulationchannels extending between said at least two opposing ends, each saiddefined interior insulation channel accommodating a single conduittherethrough, said defined interior insulation channels being separatedby insulation material, said separation being a selected distance toinsulate conduits having unequal temperature flows so as tosubstantially prevent heat transfer therebetween through conduction. 9.The insulated conduit assembly of claim 8 wherein said insulation tubehas two defined interior insulation channels.
 10. The insulated conduitassembly of claim 8 wherein said insulation tube has three definedinterior insulation channels.
 11. The insulated conduit assembly ofclaim 8 wherein said insulation tube has four defined interiorinsulation channels.
 12. The insulation conduit assembly of claim 8,wherein said flexible insulation material is an ethylene propylene dienemonomer base elastomeric composition.
 13. The insulation tube of claim8, wherein the flexible insulation material is selected from the groupconsisting of polyethylene, polypropylene, polymethylpentene,polyethylene terephthalate, polyurethane, polybutene-1, polyisobutylene,ethylene propylene rubber, nitrile, styrene-butadiene, polybutadiene,natural rubber, chloroprene, butyl and halobutyl, silicone, blends withcompatible rubbers, eg. styrene-butadiene and polybutadiene, and blendswith compatible resins, eg., nitrile and polyvinyl chloride.
 14. Theinsulation conduit assembly of claim 8, wherein the spanning interior ofeach said interior insulation channel is accessible via longitudinalseparations.
 15. The insulation tube of claim 1, wherein said at leasttwo defined interior insulation channels have equal diameters.
 16. Theinsulation tube of claim 1, wherein said at least two defined interiorinsulation channels have unequal diameters.
 17. The insulation tube ofclaim 8, wherein said at least two defined interior insulation channelshave equal diameters.
 18. The insulation tube of claim 8, wherein saidat least two defined interior insulation channels have unequaldiameters.